Prosecuting Attorney Henry Boyce of Newport announced today that James Dexter Yancy, 24, of Pocahontas had been arrested on an initial charge of manslaughter in the fatal shooting early Saturday of his roommate Nick Wayne Dawson.

Boyce said that because Yancy is the son of a Pocahontas police officer — Sgt. Dion Yancy, a criminal investigator — that a special prosecutor will be named who’ll make formal charging decisions. The State Police investigated the shooting rather than city police. In an affidavit for Yancy’s arrest, it said the two got in a fight at their home. Yancy said he had been using methamphetamine and had instigated the altercation. He had a gun in his waistband and said he shot Dawson in self-defense. According to the affidavit, other witnesses corroborated the account. His bond was set at $10,000, Boyce said.

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